UNH Athletics Receives High Marks in Capital One Cup Standings

MCLEAN, Va.
– The University of New Hampshire athletics program has
received high marks in the Capital One Cup standings as announced
by the NCAA. On the men’s side, UNH ranks 16th (18
points) while on the women’s side, the ‘Cats are
32nd (2 points).

The men’s score was achieved
due to the playoff run made by the Wildcat football team as it
advanced to the national semifinals for the first time in program
history. Football started the year off with a 1-3 record, the team
won nine of its last 11 games of the season, including a crucial
victory over No. 4 Maine to secure a spot in the FCS Playoffs for
the nation-leading 10th consecutive year. UNH topped
Lafayette in the first round of play while beating Maine on the
road for the second time of the season in the second round and
upending Southeastern Louisiana on the road in the FCS
Quarterfinals. New Hampshire’s run came to an end after a
loss to eventual national champion North Dakota State.

On the women’s side, a pair
of automatic berths from the conference champion field hockey and
volleyball helped UNH crack into the standings. After an undefeated
season in America East Conference play (5-0), the field hockey team
earned the first-seed in the conference championships, hosting the
semifinals as well as the finals. In front of the home crowd, the
Wildcats defeated defending conference champion Albany to receive a
berth to the NCAA Tournament where the team ultimately fell at
Duke.

Volleyball also enjoyed a
successful conference run, posting a 12-2 record to earn the top
seed overall for the conference championships and earning the right
to host for the first time in 10 years. After a clean sweep of
Stony Brook in the semifinals and a 3-2 set win over UMBC in the
finals, the Wildcats were slated to play the University of Southern
California in the first round. The team’s run came to an end
after falling to the Women of Troy.

At the top of the leaderboard for
the men, there is a three-way tie between FBS National Champions
Florida State University (60 points), FCS National Champions North
Dakota State, and the victors of the Men's College Cup Notre Dame.
Michigan State (42) sits in fourth while Auburn (36), Maryland and
CAA foe Towson are in a three-way tie for fifth. On the women's
side, Penn State holds the top spot with 62 points after earning
the NCAA Volleyball National Championship and finishing in the
top-10 in field hockey.

UNH is the top school in New
England in the standings on the men's side and on either side, it
is the only member of the America East Conference in the standings
to record points.

For more information on the
University of New Hampshire Wildcats, be sure to visit www.UNHWildcats.com.